Underwater
Snorkeling and Diving Around Nusa Lembongan
Manta Point and Crystal Bay, the two best-known sites, sit off neighboring Nusa Penida, a short boat ride from Lembongan's harbours.
Nusa Lembongan makes a convenient base for reaching some of the Bali Sea's richest reef diving. Manta Point and Crystal Bay lie off Nusa Penida, while Blue Corner sits off Lembongan's own coast, even though many operators sell it as part of a Nusa Penida dive trip.
Manta Point
A cleaning station on Nusa Penida's southwest coast, where reef manta rays gather to have parasites removed by smaller fish. PADI's own dive-site listing describes it as a bay where reef mantas come for cleaning, socialising and feeding, and notes that the site is exposed, so it can only be dived when conditions allow; claims of a specific peak season or a near-guaranteed sighting come from a single dive-guide publisher and are not repeated here as fact. Manta Point sits in open water with swell and surge, and reputable operators run a short briefing beforehand covering distance and no-touch rules around the rays.
Crystal Bay
On Nusa Penida, near the crossing to Nusa Ceningan, Crystal Bay is known for clear water and, in season, for one of Bali's best chances of seeing Mola mola, the oceanic sunfish. Cold-water upwelling pulls the fish up from deeper water roughly between July and October, with water temperatures dropping into the low twenties Celsius during that window. Outside those months, mola mola sightings are rare. Currents at Crystal Bay can be strong, and it is generally treated as a site for confident swimmers and divers rather than complete beginners.
Devil's Tear
On Lembongan's own southwest coast, near Dream Beach, Devil's Tear is where ocean swell forces through a narrow rock channel and bursts upward in spray. It is a clifftop viewpoint, not a snorkeling or dive site, and currents at the base are dangerous. Fatal accidents here are documented in the news: in June 2018 a visitor was hit by a wave while taking a selfie and fell into the sea (The Jakarta Post, citing the Nusa Penida police chief), and in January 2020 a visitor who had climbed over the security fence was struck by a large wave, the second such death after one in August 2019 (The Bali Sun). Sources disagree on barriers, with one travel blog saying there are no safety fences, so do not count on one; enjoy the spray from well back on the rocks rather than near the edge or in the water. Sea conditions here change from one day to the next, so a dive operator or your accommodation is a better source for today's conditions than any fixed description.
Blue Corner
A separate site from Devil's Tear despite the similar-sounding name. PADI's dive-site listing files Blue Corner under Nusa Lembongan, and NusaPenida.org places it on Lembongan's north-west coast, just past the mangrove, about 15 minutes by boat from Nusa Penida's Toyapakeh harbour, which is why many operators bundle it into "Nusa Penida" dive trips. Worth noting separately: "Blue Corner" is also the name of a globally famous, completely unrelated dive site in Palau, so double-check with your operator which one a listing refers to before booking. This Blue Corner is a drift dive in strong, sometimes unpredictable current, running from about 10 to 40 metres, reserved for advanced divers, with mola mola reported between July and October alongside rays and reef sharks, and water that can turn cold at the thermoclines.
Mangrove Area
The mangrove channel at Lembongan's northern tip is better known as a calm boat-tour destination than a formal dive site, but its sheltered, shallow water and root systems make for easy snorkeling close to shore for those who prefer calmer conditions than the open-water sites above offer.
Where Next
See Dream Beach and Devil's Tear on the surface, or how to book a day boat from Sanur.